


Haircuts and Kisses

by deepseacowboy



Category: Half-Life
Genre: Comfort No Hurt, Cuddling & Snuggling, Established Relationship, Fluff and Humor, Gordon absolutely hates his short hair, Haircuts, M/M, Post-Canon, Romantic Fluff, Sharing a Bed, i guess?, sorta going off the idea that G-Man cut Gordon's hair during stasis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-02
Updated: 2021-01-02
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:21:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28498218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deepseacowboy/pseuds/deepseacowboy
Summary: His hair lacks any grey strands unlike Barney's.It's shorter in length—he recalls it used to reach past his shoulders when let loose out of it’s ponytail but now his brown hair ends right above his neck. He always wanted to comb his fingers through the long curls but this is nice too. He thinks he looks good with short hair.-a short fic of Gordon and Barney being romantic goofs and they also talk about Gordon's hair-
Relationships: Barney Calhoun/Gordon Freeman
Comments: 6
Kudos: 75





	Haircuts and Kisses

**Author's Note:**

> in my opinion i think the half life men should be allowed to be happy and silly and kiss each other all they want so I wrote this instead of sleeping, hope you enjoy!!

Barney breathes out a content sigh as he idly toys with Gordon’s hair. For all he cared, the world didn’t exist outside of his—or was it technically theirs now?—dingy little room. If they wanted they could stay here all day, falling in and out of sleep underneath the stitched and torn thin blanket. It didn’t provide any protection from the chilly ventilation circulating through the room and it barely covered their bodies fully, one of his feet pokes out from under the end of the blanket and a small portion of his back is exposed to the elements. Gordon isn’t lucky either as he pulls it over to his side every few minutes. He guesses that’s how they got to where they are right now, cuddling up to one another with their limbs intertwined and bodies radiating a comfortable warmth. Gordon lies across from him, his face a few inches from his own and his eyes are closed but he’s just as awake as he is. He takes the moment to take in the sight of his partner.

He doesn’t look too different from the last time he saw him. A little worrying if you ask him. The man looks like he hasn’t aged in 20 years. His hair lacks any grey strands unlike Barney's. It's shorter in length—he recalls it used to reach past his shoulders when let loose out of it’s ponytail but now his brown hair ends right above his neck. He always wanted to comb his fingers through the long curls but this is nice too. He thinks he looks good with short hair.

“I can’t say I didn’t like you with long hair but I think this look suits you. ”Barney voices his thoughts in a quiet whisper as he twirls a finger into a curly strand of hair going down the other man’s nape.

Gordon’s face flushes and all he can do is offer a sheepish smile. Barney slides his hand further up and rakes his fingers through the man’s head of hair. "What made you want to cut it?" he asks out of genuine curiosity.

The last time he brought it up,20 years ago when Black Mesa hadn’t hit the fan yet, Gordon had made it crystal clear that he wasn’t getting rid of ponytail anytime soon and _NO_ Barney _CAN NOT_ cut it off when he was asleep. Though it never stopped the guard from joking about it.

Gordon in the present opens his eyes but he’s not looking at him but instead it’s fixated elsewhere. He makes no move to respond even after a few seconds of silence from both of them. Something about his grim expression makes Barney genuinely worried.

“Do you not like it?”

He shakes his head which makes Barney chuckle. That wasn’t the right response as Gordon’s frown deepens. He tries to fix his error by scratching the back of his head, hoping that it’s in some way soothing.

“Aw darlin’, I’m sure it’ll grow out soon enough. How long did it take last time?”

Gordon brings his hands up and does his best signing in the space between them and while doing so his face scrunches up with distaste. "A year.”

“That ain’t too long-OW!”

Gordon flicks Barney’s face. He pinches the back of his neck in retaliation. Gordon flicks his arm right back. A competition sparks between the two on who can get the last punch until Barney decides he’s had enough of being flicked at and captures Gordon’s hand in his own and brings it close to his lips.

“Besides y’know what they say? ”he practically purrs in a silky smooth voice. He raises an exaggerated eyebrow and continues. "Time flies when you’re having fun and I fully intend to make up for lost time." He adds a wink to his cheesy attempt at a flirt and softly kisses the back of Gordon’s hand.

Gordon blankly stares at him for a few seconds processing before erupting into a giggling mess. His head falls onto Barney’s shoulder and he laughs into it, his breath warm and beard ticklish against his skin.

“I’m glad you think that’s funny.” he jokes fondly through a smile that threatens to consume his entire face. Gordon eventually calms down but he nuzzles his face into the crook of his neck. The physicist’s arms snake around his waist tightly until their bodies are pressed up snuggly against each other. Barney feels his own face erupt into a ripe strawberry and a huffed laugh escapes him at the unexpected affection. As soon as Gordon starts peppering kisses along his neck, he can’t control the happy giggles that jump out of him.

“Gordon-!”he struggles to speak as the man in question continues to pamper him with kisses, each one climbing higher up his neck. He kicks his leg against the mattress as he laughs and hears the frame creak with every impact. Gordon lands one onto the bottom of his jaw but before he can plant another one, Barney blocks it with a hand and sets a close distance between the two. He takes a few deep breaths as he tries to regain his composure.

"I appreciate the love but are you try’na give me a heart attack?”

Gordon looks thoughtful for a moment as he tilts his head in contemplation. The small action makes Barney smile for the hundredth time that day. How could be not? Everything about the other man beside him filled him with a thick and sugary sweet like maple syrup sappiness. From how he could still make him laugh like he used to on those late nights where’d they find themselves in each other’s company in one of Black Mesa’s break rooms; how he still has the physicist’s freckles memorized even after all those years spent agonizing over when he’ll come back and if he’d even remember Barney. Just thinking about all the things he’s missed makes him swallow down the rapidly beating heart in his throat.

Gordon eventually nods his head repeatedly as his answer.

“Heh, well warn a guy next time, yeah?”

Gordon takes a moment to think for a second time and supposedly chuckles at whatever he’s thinking about and he wheezily laughs more as he signs: "I’m going to kiss you...a lot...more. If that’s alright with you.”

Barney still has his hand on Gordon but he’s moved it down to his chest unknowingly. He can feel his heart beating inside his chest even through the thick wool sweater he’s wearing and feels it rise and fall with every slow breath. His heart starts beating rapidly faster. He’s still waiting for Barney to give him permission to kiss him again.

“Well go right ahead, darlin’.” he slowly moves his hands up to cup Gordon’s face and meets the other man’s lips with his own. His lips are chapped and scarred and he forgets to breathe through his nose but Barney is too busy relishing the moment to care.

He could spend the rest of his days here, alongside Gordon, and even if the world was falling apart he’d at least go through it with someone he truly loved and trusted...but first they’ll spend the rest of the day in their less than perfect room and get some well deserved time to catch up.


End file.
